Infinitesimal displacement in spherical coordinates

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around deriving the expression for ##ds^2## in spherical coordinates. Participants explore the relationships between the Cartesian and spherical coordinate systems, focusing on the differential elements involved in the transformation. The scope includes mathematical reasoning and technical explanation.

Discussion Character

  • Technical explanation
  • Mathematical reasoning

Main Points Raised

  • One participant begins by stating the relationship between Cartesian coordinates and spherical coordinates, expressing concern about a missing term in their derivation of ##ds^2##.
  • Another participant clarifies their use of the angles, indicating that the interchange of angle variables does not resolve the missing term issue.
  • A third participant revises their earlier calculations, providing a more detailed breakdown of the differential elements and suggesting that the dependency of ##A## on ##B## may be a source of confusion.
  • The initial poster acknowledges an error in their steps and indicates they have arrived at the correct answer, thanking others for their assistance.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on the initial derivation, as there is a recognition of errors and corrections made throughout the discussion. The conversation reflects a process of refinement rather than a definitive conclusion.

Contextual Notes

There are limitations in the assumptions made regarding the relationships between the spherical coordinates and their Cartesian counterparts. The dependency of variables and the handling of differential elements remain points of complexity.

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I'm trying to derive what ##ds^2## equals to in spherical coordinates.
In Euclidean space, $$ds^2= dx^2+dy^2+dz^2$$
Where ##x=r \ cos\theta \ sin\phi## , ##y=r \ sin\theta \ sin\phi## , ##z=r \ cos\phi## (I'm using ##\phi## for the polar angle)
For simplicity, let ##cos \phi = A## and ##sin \phi = B##
Then ##dx=r \ cos\theta \ dB + B(cos \theta \ dr - r \ sin \theta \ d \theta)##
##dy=r \ sin\theta \ dB + B(sin \theta \ dr + r \ cos \theta \ d \theta)##
##dz= r \ dA + A \ dr##
When I add up the squares of the 3 differential elements above, gather similar terms and replace ##A## and ##B##, I get ##ds^2 = dr^2 + r^2 \ sin^2 \phi \ d \theta^2## , and you can see that one term is missing. Is something wrong with my approach?
 
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theodoros.mihos said:
$$ z = r\cos{\theta} $$
I'm using ##\phi ## as the polar angle and ##\theta## as the azimuthal angle over here. Either way, that won't add the missing term, but will only interchange the angle variables.
 
Sorry I see later.
$$ x = rB\cos{theta} \,\Rightarrow\, dx = dr\,B\cos{\theta} + r\,dB\,\cos{theta} - rB\sin{\theta} = (B\,dr + r\,dB)\cos{\theta} - rB\sin{\theta} $$
$$ dy = (B\,dr + r\,dB)\sin{\theta} +rB\cos{\theta} \,\text{and}\, dz = A\,dr-rB\,d\phi $$
because
$$ A = cos{\phi} \Rightarrow dA = -\sin{\phi}\,d\phi = -B\,d\phi \,\text{and}\, dB = A\,d\phi $$
I think your problem is that A depends by B.
 
Last edited:
I found an error in my steps. I'm getting the correct answer now. Anyways, thanks for helping :)
 

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